Although the technology for preparation of edible food containers has been in existence for some time, that technology has been directed to either of two general processes. The first process utilizes a mold and can be used in connection with a pourable batter (e.g., a cookie batter). The second process employs a winding surface such as the outer surface of a mandrel for the formation of a conical or cylindrical shaped container, and can be used in connection with a prebaked wafer or viscous dough (e.g., a pretzel dough). In general, these processes tend to be mutually exclusive with respect to the type of batter or dough employed (i.e., a pourable batter cannot be used in connection with a mandrel-based process). This is particularly true since pourable batters typically increase in fluidity during the heating process. Accordingly, pourable batters such as cookie batters cannot be formed into anything other than a flat shape unless the dough is poured into a mold which includes surfaces for confining the dough and configuring it into a particular shape.
In addition, the inclusion of leavening agents in pourable batters leads to gas formation during baking. Thus, as the increasingly fluid batter is heated within the mold, uneven cooking and distribution of gases may result. These problems become more apparent when attempts are made to prepare an edible container having a thickness greater than a few millimeters. In such applications, bubble formation results in regions in the final product which are more susceptible to breakage and leakage.
One approach to rectifying the problems of uneven heating and gas formation has been to utilize a mold having upper and lower portions which are distinguished by different rates of heat transfer (U.S. Pat. No. 4,812,323 issued to Savage. However, the control of heat transfer rates alone is insufficient to overcome the above-identified problems. Accordingly, the differential heat transfer process disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,812,323 is limited in application to use in combination with molds lacking interior corners, in order to achieve uniform gas dispersion during baking.
The second category of processes for the formation of edible food containers, generally include a winding mold such as the outer surface of a mandrel about which a baked wafer or viscous dough is wrapped. Baked wafer products containing a relatively high sugar content are known as sweet wafer products and can be shaped immediately after baking, while still warm. In practice, a warm, flat wafer is given its final shape in a winding mold in which each flat wafer is rolled around a winding core. The wafer is allowed to cool on the winding core until it acquires a firmer consistency, after which, it is removed from the winding mold. Sweet wafer products are typically thin, crisp and known for their brittle consistency. Alternatively, wafer products may be baked in a casting mold (e.g., cast wafer ice cream cones). Cones produced thereby also tend to be relatively brittle.
In a variation on the wafer-winding mold process, U.S. Pat. No. 4,795,652 issued to Cooper, discloses a method of forming an edible food product using a viscous dough e.g., pretzel dough). The uncooked rolled dough is wrapped around a shaping mandrel, showered with a caustic soda solution, baked and cooled on the mandrel. Application of the caustic soda solution presumably prevents further rising of the dough by stopping the enzymatic reactions associated with yeast-based baked products. Pretzel doughs typically include yeast as a leavening agent.
The afore-mentioned processes result in products which are brittle, limited in taste combinations and not particularly nutritious. Neither do these processes provide for the removal of residual moisture from the baked container in order to enhance the container's shelf life properties. In addition, none of these processes provide for incorporation of a crumb mixture into the surface of the food container which mixture does not appreciably flake off the surface of the food container. Thus, none of the afore-mentioned processes provide for inclusion of a crumb mixture composed of any combination of whole grains, nut fragments, fruit pieces, or candies on the surface of a food container to provide a unique texture and taste experience for the consuming public.